Elkanah and his family at Shiloh
Language: there was a certain man from Ramathaim( the birthplace of Samuel and the seat of his authority )
Hill Country of Ephraim: one of the Tribes of Israel. The Tribe of Manasseh together with Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph
Name: Elkanah (son of Elkanah, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephramite)
Wives: (Hannah & Peninnah); Peninnah had children, Hanna had none
Description: Elkanah went upt to Shiloh to give sacrifice where his two sons(priests) ministered to the lord. He would give Peninnah portions with her sons and daughters and would give Hannah double that because he loved her.
Hannah couldn't have any children God closed her womb and Peninnah torment and harass her for this. Hannah would cry and wouldn't eat; Elkanah would try to mitigate it the pain that Hannah would endure.
"AM I NOT BETTER FOR YOU THAN TEN SONS"Hannah's prayer:
Who: Hanna and God and ELI( the woman priest) 1 Samuel 1:13
Where: Shiloh and Ramah
Description: Hannah made a vow while weeping: "O Lord of hosts, if you look with pity on the hardship of your servant, if you remember me and do not forget me, if you give your handmaid a male child, I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life. No razor shall ever touch his head."
Eli thought she was drunk, but Hannah was very miserable. Eli said " Go in peace and may the God of Israel grant you what you have requested"
Hannah: "Let your servant find favor in your eyes"
Hannah and Eli worshipped the next day and left for Ramah, her home.
When they returned Elkanah had intercourse with his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her.
Hannah Bears a son:
What: She conceived and at the end of her pregnancy, bore a son whom she named Samuel.
"because I asked the Lord for him."
Going up to yearly worship, Hannah does not go up to worship, she waits to wean her Samuel.
"Once the child is weaned, I will take him to appear before the Lord and leave him there forever."
Hannah Presents Samuel to the Lord:
What: Once weaned, she brought Samuel up to the lord with:
- 3 year old bull
- ephah of flour
- skin of wine
to sacrifice. Slaughtered the bull, they brought the child to Eli, and she talked to the LORD. Samuel will be dedicated to the LORD.
Dedication is not a one time act. It’s a habit.
https://mbgmennonite.wordpress.com/2011/10/26/an-ephah-of-flour-and-a-skin-of-wine/
What this means to me is that the Lord's grace is with us. Whenever we want something we must a) dedicate, b) keep persevering, and c) keep praying for it. If we do this and consistently go through the rigors of studying, training, and have continual focus on the goal along with prayer we will eventually break bounds and get to the state of where want to go.
In the section that Hannah was constantly provoked by her rival wife, Peninnah, over not being able to bear children Hannah was heart broken, distraught, and ultimately driven to do whatever it took to get what she wanted. At Shiloh Hannah was yelling out to the Lord asking him to give her a baby boy that she would eventually sacrifice to the Lord as a Naziritie. Eli, the woman priest, was there and she listened to Hannah's story, sympathizing, Eli prayed out to God with Hannah to wish that she had a baby boy.
The next day when Hannah got back from the the pilgrimage Elkanah had intercourse with Hannah and she bore a baby boy. The LORD answered Hannah's prayer and she had gone through with the sacrifice like she said she would. She brought her son, Samuel, up to Shiloh and gave him up to the LORD, and Eli had prayed on it. This story gives a sense of drive and sacrifice on the behalf of Hannah. She was driven and she prayed upon her short fallings and asked the LORD to give her a baby boy. She then followed through with her offerings and left him to Eli. This shows great strength and shows every one who reads this passage that the impossible is possible as long as GOD is by your side.
As a reference, there was a woman by the name of Lori. This woman is what we call superwoman at our local Brookhaven Starbucks. She has endured a lot in her years and through Facebook and working with her, I have learned a lot about life. When you talk to Superwoman, she is perceived as a happy go lucky, caring, fun woman which doesn't even scratch the surface of what she is going through. She has a lot of responsibilities: working full time at Starbucks, a mother of 2, and going through school and making it look easy. Another woman who I worked with Kelly another superwoman at Starbucks, she is a single mother of two working two jobs, by day a barista at Starbucks and by night a barista at Cafe Intermezzo which is very impressive. These two woman in my eyes have captured and gave me a strong sense of passion on how to live life. No matter what you are going through these two women are persevering and working through every obstacle in life, they show us that working hard and getting through your challenges with a positive attitude and a smile can carry us to the finish line.
In my opinion, Elkanah having two wives is a bit crazy, and I understand that back then that was common practice. In today's American society, it is looked down to have two wives or two women that you have sexual relations with. I understand God let the society have it's way and did not mess with the culture. God was there to listen and to answer and to make sure that you did right. Perspective is everything. Also giving up your son, that is what the Roman's did with Spartans, that you had to serve as a warrior and what the certain other island cultures did for boys to become men.
https://mbgmennonite.wordpress.com/2011/10/26/an-ephah-of-flour-and-a-skin-of-wine/
What this means to me is that the Lord's grace is with us. Whenever we want something we must a) dedicate, b) keep persevering, and c) keep praying for it. If we do this and consistently go through the rigors of studying, training, and have continual focus on the goal along with prayer we will eventually break bounds and get to the state of where want to go.
In the section that Hannah was constantly provoked by her rival wife, Peninnah, over not being able to bear children Hannah was heart broken, distraught, and ultimately driven to do whatever it took to get what she wanted. At Shiloh Hannah was yelling out to the Lord asking him to give her a baby boy that she would eventually sacrifice to the Lord as a Naziritie. Eli, the woman priest, was there and she listened to Hannah's story, sympathizing, Eli prayed out to God with Hannah to wish that she had a baby boy.
The next day when Hannah got back from the the pilgrimage Elkanah had intercourse with Hannah and she bore a baby boy. The LORD answered Hannah's prayer and she had gone through with the sacrifice like she said she would. She brought her son, Samuel, up to Shiloh and gave him up to the LORD, and Eli had prayed on it. This story gives a sense of drive and sacrifice on the behalf of Hannah. She was driven and she prayed upon her short fallings and asked the LORD to give her a baby boy. She then followed through with her offerings and left him to Eli. This shows great strength and shows every one who reads this passage that the impossible is possible as long as GOD is by your side.
As a reference, there was a woman by the name of Lori. This woman is what we call superwoman at our local Brookhaven Starbucks. She has endured a lot in her years and through Facebook and working with her, I have learned a lot about life. When you talk to Superwoman, she is perceived as a happy go lucky, caring, fun woman which doesn't even scratch the surface of what she is going through. She has a lot of responsibilities: working full time at Starbucks, a mother of 2, and going through school and making it look easy. Another woman who I worked with Kelly another superwoman at Starbucks, she is a single mother of two working two jobs, by day a barista at Starbucks and by night a barista at Cafe Intermezzo which is very impressive. These two woman in my eyes have captured and gave me a strong sense of passion on how to live life. No matter what you are going through these two women are persevering and working through every obstacle in life, they show us that working hard and getting through your challenges with a positive attitude and a smile can carry us to the finish line.
In my opinion, Elkanah having two wives is a bit crazy, and I understand that back then that was common practice. In today's American society, it is looked down to have two wives or two women that you have sexual relations with. I understand God let the society have it's way and did not mess with the culture. God was there to listen and to answer and to make sure that you did right. Perspective is everything. Also giving up your son, that is what the Roman's did with Spartans, that you had to serve as a warrior and what the certain other island cultures did for boys to become men.
